


The Haunting of Shane.

by Elliot



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: And with sad I mean heartfelt, Gen, Ryan died and is a ghost, This was meant to be funny and then it turned sad, promise that it will become funny in later chapters!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-04
Updated: 2019-12-03
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:13:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21664996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elliot/pseuds/Elliot
Summary: Ryan is a ghost and makes true on his promise to haunt Shane.-----So he was dead.He had established that fact about a week ago when he found himself staring down at his body in the otherwise empty street.Somehow he never had considered this option whenever he wondered how he would die.
Relationships: Ryan Bergara & Shane Madej
Comments: 2
Kudos: 67





	The Haunting of Shane.

**Author's Note:**

> Soooo yeah, procrastination is great, no? It gave me a shitton of B:UN fics, that's for sure. 
> 
> And here I was thinking, 'ooh, Ryan hunting Shane, that would be fun!' but then thinks happened and I managed to make it hurt just a little before we kick off with shenanigans.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

_"Jesus Christ! If you slit my throat tonight, I'm gonna have a hard time forgiving you for that."_

_"Will you haunt me for the rest of my life?"_

_"No, 'cause I'll be dead. Ghosts aren't real."_

_"Oh, okay. Fair enough."_

\- _Buzzfeed Unsolved_ , “3 Horrifying Cases Of Ghosts And Demons” 

* * *

  
  
Day 1 of the Haunting of Shane. 

So he was dead.

He had established that fact about a week ago when he found himself staring down at his body in the otherwise empty street. 

Somehow he never had considered this option whenever he wondered how he would die. Pushed off a stairs by a ghost and breaking his neck, sure. A demon ripping him apart on one of their ill-advised investigations, absolutely. A deathtrap of a house where he would stab himself with a rusty nail in the floorboards and get a bad case of blood poisoning to die in the hospital, not too farfetched at all. But a mugging? Yeah, maybe Shane had been a little bit right after all. Humans were scary. 

He had watched a lady pushing a shopping cart full of bags find him, search his body for valuables, but came up empty (his cross, wallet, and phone had already been stolen), and at his unresponsiveness had started pulling off his jacket, until she noticed the blood. Then she screamed and attracted the attention of passers-by with their phones who called the police. He had watched the police set up the crime scene, question the poor lady, zip up his body and take it away. 

He had followed, of course. It seemed like the natural thing to do. Besides no one wanted to be left in a back alley of LA among the dumpsters and trash. Not even a ghost. 

Sadly, this wasn't quite one of his beloved unsolved cases, but maybe that was for the best. It would give his family closure. 

They examined his body, had his parents identify the body, and within a week they had buried him.

It wasn't as if he felt a pull to his body though. He had spent the week testing out his abilities. Why not, the morgue was boring to say the least and when it wasn't it was bloody and gross and the medical examiner had a horrible habit of chewing loudly and way too close to the metal slabs. He couldn't stand it, so he had wandered around, testing the distance he could put between his body and his spirit. Turns out there was no limit. He could happily explore the building, peek over the shoulders of officers, look at the photos on desks, and look at all the evidence in the evidence locker at leisure (it was a lot less exciting than the movies made it out to be, lacking the pallets full of drugs although there were enough weapons to stock a small army). He could even ride around in a cop car all day.

Still it felt right to go with his body when his parents picked him up.

Picked him up... Jesus, it wasn't like they were taking him home from the ball pit at IKEA, the airport after a long trip, or even that one time he had ended up being arrested for trespassing for his ghost hunting shenanigans. He was dead. Dunzo. Finito. His body lay in a coffin in the back of a hearse. 

Fuck. 

It hurt to see his family so distraught.

Then the funeral had happened. Family, friends, colleagues. He hated seeing them sad. He was there, feeling horribly underdressed in his sweats and hoodie, half intending to walk away, but that was considered rude, wasn't it? So he stood next to his body and listened to the well-meaning words that people offered him.

So many of them already talked to him like he was past tense. And, of course, he technically was. He knew that. But it still made him uncomfortable.

It was Shane's turn next, and maybe he had imagined it, but Ryan could swear those familiar brown eyes flicked up at him. For a moment. Then they lingered on the empty shell of his body. 

"Hey asshole," Shane greeted him and Ryan snorted, startled. He was talking softly, very softly, but with a fondness and better yet, it was on brand. Familiar. Even if there was a... a wistfulness. Shane was hurting. It was a rare look on him. "this wasn't the deal, you know. I was gonna haunt /you/. Don't get any ideas though, Ryan Bergara. Ghosts don't exist. _Move on, buddy._ "

It was said in the usual vein of their banter, their discussions. A 'I made my point, go on with your life' kind of way. But Ryan could hear it. It wasn't just that. It was a prompt for him to find a door and step through. Except there was no door. Not a special one that connected to the afterlife if there was such a thing. There hadn't been a door for a week now.

The service had concluded and Ryan watched as they lowered his body into the ground. He was surrounded by family and friends, and further off the dead. He'd shivered when they'd approached the graveyard, feeling the washes of sadness and anger and the still of time coast against his being. And when they had stood in front of the gates he saw them. Not as many as he had expected but there were those haunted-looking faces, peeking up in curiosity, faceless shapes lurking as they passed their gravestones. But they stayed at a distance as people placed flower after flower next to his grave. 

And now what? 

Was that door going to pop up now he was done? Was he done? Was he going to stay here? He'd seen the other ghosts linger. To waste away on a graveyard... 

No, fuck that. He didn't want that. He wasn't tied to his body. He could go.

His eyes fell on Shane. His best friend. Maybe he could fill his time showing Shane that ghosts were real. Until that door came and he could move on like Shane had told him to. Not that he wanted to. He would miss Shane.

Shane who stood there with hands pushed deeply into his pockets, looking lost. 

With Ryan's death both their worlds had fallen away, Ryan realised. They'd gotten so close in the few years they'd worked together. Sharing fear and laughter would do that, he guessed. Moments of vulnerability and moments of pure joy. 

Ryan smiled softly at the memory. 

But no more Ryan meant no more working together, no late night (early morning) wind-downs, no movie nights or nights out, no more banter. Buzzfeed could be damned. Yes, his pet project was a labour of love and maybe Shane could find another believer as co-host, but it wouldn't be the same and they had talked about that. Buzzfeed Unsolved needed Ryan and Shane wasn't going to continue without him. He had been adamant about that.

Huh, wouldn't it be funny to be a ghost co-host? A co-ghost. Shane would have wheezed.

But they were friends. That came first. Always. 

It had been a week and he already missed their talks. Fuck.

He wondered if it was cruel to follow Shane home.He'd heard of people noticing passed loved ones sticking around and how it affected them, kept reminding them of their loss. Others found it comforting to have the spirits of their loved ones around. In that case he should go with his parents. But it hurt to see them sad. It would be worse to see them cling onto any shred of hope.

Shane didn't believe in any of that crap. Staying around Shane was the safe choice. If anyone could keep him safe and sane until that door appeared it would be Shane. Even if it would hurt to see that lost look on his face. He would go when that door called. This was temporary. But until then... 

Maybe he could show him he was still around.

He had practically promised it.

-

_"Ryan, Ghosts aren't real."_

_"I swear to God, Shane, if I die tomorrow I'm coming back just to proof to you that ghosts are real. Only you admitting you were wrong will get rid of me."_

_"Never! (Chuckles)"_

-

Besides, he kind of had to now that Shane had told him to fuck on off to heaven or hell or wherever the dead went. It was part of their friendship. 


End file.
